Balloon releases banned in Palm Beach

Monday

Though cheerful additions to birthday parties, graduations and the like, balloons pose a dire threat to birds, sea turtles and other animals that mistake them for food after they’re released.

That is why the Town Council on Feb. 14 unanimously adopted an ordinance banning the release of balloons and sky lanterns within the town.

Councilwoman Danielle Moore, who was on the Ordinances, Rules and Standards Committee when it recommended the ban last year, said Monday the council took a reasonable approach.

"We’re not banning the use of balloons on beaches," she said. "We are banning the release of balloons and sky lanterns on beaches. They have proven to be detrimental to marine life and the environment. Our goal was to become more environmentally aware. There are other cities who have done this and we thought Palm Beach should be on that bandwagon."

Diane Buhler, leader of Friends of Palm Beach, a volunteer group that cleans up waste from town beaches, said she has picked up as many as 14 balloons from the shore in one day.

"For every one picked up, the numbers of those not picked up, and out there potentially causing harm, are tenfold," she said. "I am all for a ban that hopefully starts people thinking about how they can change habits that harm the environment."

"Every year, our sea turtle hospital treats hundreds of patients, many of whom have been impacted by marine pollution including balloons," he said in an email. "Banning balloons will significantly help keep our coastal and marine ecosystems clean and healthy."

Bobbie Lindsay, chairwoman of the Ordinances, Rules and Standards Committee, said it also looked at banning plastic bags but learned that state law preempts the town’s ability to do that. The town and Palm Beach County are among about 25 local governments that have asked the Florida Legislature to allow local governments to ban the bags, she said.

"Most of them end up in the ocean, where they don’t break down," Lindsay said. There they are consumed by fish that often end up on the lunch and dinner plates of humans. "It is so frightening, the toxicity of our food, because of plastic," she said.